Display-rack.



J. E. EDMUNDS.

DISPLAY BAGK. APPLICATION TILED 11.21, 1910.

Patented July 1, 1913.

2 SHEETS-832111 1.

J. B. EDMUNDS. DISPLAY RACK. APPLICATION FILED APR. 21, 1910.

Patented July 1, 1913.

2 BHEETFSHEET 2.

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qwi/r/wwow JOHN E. -EDMUNDS, 0F OTTAWA, ILLINOIS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

DISPLAY-RAG K.

Patented July 1, 1913.

Application filed April 21, 1910. Serial No. 556,770.

To all whom it may concern: 3 7

Be it known that I, JOHN E. EDMUNDS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Ottawa, in the county of Lasalle and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Display-Rack, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to display racks and the object of the invention is to provide a strong and inexpensive rack by which rugs may be displayed in either a vertical or a horizontal position, or partially in both positions.

In the ordinary rug rack, the rugs are held in a vertical position, and, quite frequently, the customer will ask the salesman to take a certain rug down from the hanging rack and lay it upon the floor before deciding to purchase. A rug which has been viewed in a vertical position looks differently when placed upon the floor.

By providing a rack in which the rugs may be viewed in either a vertical position, or a horizontal position, or partially in both positions, the objections to the present man ner of displaying rugs are obviated, and a rack is produced which will be of great convenience in use.

These stated objects, and such other objects as will hereinafter appear, are attained in the use of the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and the invention consists in certain novel features of the same which will be hereinafter first fully described and then more particularly defined in the appended claim.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a display rack embodying myinvention. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the same showing rugs in position thereon. Fig. 3 is a transverse section through the lower portion of the rack. Fig. 4 is a detail view of a portion of the operating mechanism.

In carrying out my invention, I employ a pair of longitudinal sills 1 connected by transverse sills 2 at their'ends whereby a rigid base is provided. At that end of the base which appears at the left in the drawings, I erect corner posts 3 connected with the transverse sill 2 by braces tto impart rigidity to the structure, and upon the upper sides of the sills, near the said posts 3,

I provide the standards 5 which extend to the height desired for the rack. The posts 5 are connected near their upper ends by a cross bar 6, and a roller 7 is journaled in the upper ends of the posts or standards, as shown. The upper ends of the corner posts 3 are also connected by a cross bar 8 and the said posts are connected with the inner posts or standards 5 by short connecting bars 9, as shown. It will be understood that the posts, sills and braces form an upright frame which is open on the front side along which the rugs are carried in a vertical position, as hereinafter explained. Upon the said bars 9, I provide bearings 10 in which upper and lower transverse shafts or rollers 11 are journaled, the said shafts or rollers being equippedat their front ends withgear wheels 12, as clearly shown in Fig. 1. Pivoted, at 13, on' the front corner I post 3 is a lever 14 whichmxtends through a keeper or bracket 15 on the side of the front standard 5. A pinion16'is carried the upper or the lower gear wheelf12 ac-' cordingly as the lever is raised or lowered, as will be readily understood, the said pinion being provided with a crank arm 17 integral with or secure-d rigidly to its hub, whereby the pinion may be rotated and thereby impart motion to that gear wheel 12 with which it meshes. The lever 14 may be held in its upper or lower position by any suitable means, and, in the drawings, I have illustrated a lug or projection 18 on the inner side of the bracket orkeeper 15 adapted to engage the upper or the lower edge of the lever, and the lever is equipped with a spring 19 bearing against the adjacent standard and holding the lever normally toward the outer side of the bracket so that it will be held against the said lug or projection 18, and, at the same time, may bereadily moved past the same when it is desired to change the direction of movement of the rugs. v

On the upper sides of the sills 1 and 2, I secure a border frame 20 consisting of smooth boards secured rigidly to the upper sides of the said sills between thestandards 5 and the right hand end of the base and finished in imitation of a hard wood floor. Between the longitudinal sills, adjathe standards 5, immediately abot e the her der frame 20, a third supporting and guid ingroller 23 is located. "The border frame is provided near its outer end, in its inner opposed side edges, with notches 24: through which the edges of the rugs may pass and.

below this border frame between the longi- 'tudinal sills of the base, I provide a rack' consisting of the transverse bars or strips 25 and the longitudinal strips or bars 26 secured to the upper sides of the transverse I bars in order that the body of the rug may be supported horizontally with its edges overlapping the edges of the border frame, as will be readily understood on reference to Fig. 3.

Having thus made known the construction and arrangement of the several parts of the display rack, it is thought the operation and advantages of the same will be readily understood and appreciated, The rugs to be displayed are connectedby means of any suitable connecting hooks, indicated'at27, so as to form 'a continuous web, and they are then wound on the upper and lower rollers orsha-fts 11, after beinglthreaded over the roller 7, under the roller 23, over th roller 21 and under the roller 22, as clearly shown in Fig. 2. The web of rugs will thus be caused to travel over the rack consisting of the bars 25 and 26 to bedispla'yedand may then be drawn: up ,in a vertical position over the roller 7 and wound upon the upper roller or shaft 11, or may be drawn under the rack and wound onthe lower roller 11, as will be readily understood. Motion is imparted to the web of rugs by shifting the lever 14 so as to bring the pinion l6 into-mesh with either the upper or the lower gear wheel 12 and then rotating the pinion by means of the handle or crank 17, Th'e'web of rugs will thus be caused to wind onone of the rollers or shafts 11 and unwindfrom the other shaft. It will be notedthat when a rug has been brought over thebars 25 and 26, its-edges will overlap and lie upon the border frame 20 so that the rug. will beseen independent of other rugs and in connection with an imitation: ofhard wood-floor, so-

that the customer may ob-tain'a clearimpression of the appearance the rug will have when placed upon the floor of the room. Should it be desired to remove any particular rug,. it may be detached from the web of rugs by disconnecting the hooks or other fastenings 27, and the rugs which were formerly at the oppositesides of the separated rug may be thenconnected.

It will be noted that the upright frame is ,in "Fig. 2 of the drawings.

arranged at the inner end of the border flH'Ine' and a taright angle tlreretmso that the rugs assu'nrfea position approximating the shape of the letter L, as shown clearly It is manifest that the mechanism may be operated to displa'y'ain entire rug in a horizontal position within the border frame, or in a vertical position between the rollers 7 and: 23,;or a partof the rug within the border frame and the remaining portion in the open front side of the upright frame.

The rugs-at tlieeiids of theweb may be wound directly upon the shafts or rollers 11,. or may be connected' with the said shafts through supplemental webs of v cheaper fabric permanently attached to the shafts so as to permit the rugs at theends ofthe web to be displayed without necessitating the manual reengagement of the rugs withthe shafts. With my improved display rack, the rugs will not be placed upon the floor of the storeroom so as toinvite the customer to walk upon and soil theface of the rugs and at the same time the rugsare'not hung vertically upon the walls-of the stor'eroom, nor. upon space-'consumingfracks or swing ing arms which 'wilknot display the rugs'in the position they willi have whenin 'usef. Furthermore, the device employed by me will accommodate a large numb'erof rugs within a small spade'and, when 'notin use, will facilitate the protection; of the rug-s against dust, as acemp avely small -o overing may thrownf'over the r-aclrand thereby protect the entire web of; rugs against. the dust raised] in cleaning the storeroom; I I, I

The advantages of the const aictionand of the method of operationwilt be readily apparent to those'skilled in the art to which the invention apperltains, and while I have described the principle of operation of the invention, together with the device which I now consider to be the best embodiment thereof, I desire to have it-understoodthat the device shown is merely illustrative, and that such changes maybe made when -desired as are within the scope of the claim appended hereto.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

A display rack'for rugs or like articles comprising a horizontal framework and a vertical framework, the vertical framework being located at one end of the horizontal framework, rollers mounted in the vertical framework "upon which may be rolled-a series of the articles, to be displayed connected end to end, means for turning one of said rollers, and guidesfor the series of articles whereby the [series ofarticlesmay be Wound from one roller to the other and caused to pass over the horizontal framework and over 13? the vertical framework, the View of the articles passing over each framework being unobstructed and the size of each framework t being such that a single article may be prel 5 sented to the view substantially in its en- \Vitnesses:

tirety upon each framework. H. W. JOHNSON,

In testimony, that I Claim the foregoing t S. B. BRADFORD.

as my own, I have hereto affixed my signature 1n the presence of two wltnesses.

JOHN E. EDMUNDS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0. 

